Endoplasmic Reticulum Disease Clinic 2: First Step

By Dr. Fumihiko Urano

What is the first step to provide the best care for patients with rare endoplasmic reticulum diseases, including Wolfram syndrome? The answer probably applies to any undiagnosed disease.

My answer as of today is “exome sequencing.” What is exome sequencing? Exome sequencing is a new technology to sequence all the genes in each patient. This is available at our medical center. By looking at all the genes instead of one gene (such as WFS1 gene), we have a better chance to understand what is really going on in each patient. This is also critical for designing “personalized” treatment. As I mentioned before, each patient is different, and should be treated differently. We should look at all the genes, not one.